Oregon State Workers Target 'Broken Systems'

Oregon AFSCME said its recent survey of more than 500 workers found the majority say they are working in systems so broken that they are dealing with physical violence, threats, and life-threatening conditions.
The union’s workplace safety report — “Unsafe on the Job” — released earlier this month, found that understaffing, extreme overtime and a lack of safety protocols are creating untenable situations in workplaces throughout the state.
The group wants legislators to pass a package of workplace safety policies and invest more in safety and staffing in the behavioral health system, across state agencies and at hospitals, according to the report.
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New guidance from the National Safety Council is designed to give safety professionals research-backed strategies to identify risks early and take action before injuries occur.
The 40-page report — “The Importance of Musculoskeletal Disorder and Related Injury Surveillance: An Organizational Approach” — focuses professionals on strategies for consistent injury classification and data collection, helping organizations better identify risks and target prevention efforts.
The NSC also address leveraging IoT devices, AI analytics and automated systems to expand and enhance workplace monitoring and early intervention.
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New Federal legislation would permit 16- and 17-year-olds to work in their family’s logging business.
The Future Logging Careers Act (S. 509 and H.R. 1193) would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 – which lists hazardous jobs that are off-limits to anyone younger than 18 – to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to work in certain mechanized logging operations under parental supervision.
The exemptions would be similar to existing ones applying to farming families.
Both the American Loggers Council and the Associated Logging Contractors of Idaho support the legislation.
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OSHA Training Services is launching an online training course designed to protect workers and help employers comply with OSHA regulations by ensuring that those employees who are not authorized to enter or assist in permit-required confined space entry operations recognize the dangers and strictly avoid these hazardous spaces.
The free online course will give participants a better understand of what qualifies as a confined space, along with real-world examples of permit-required confined spaces found in various work environments.
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